Most Common Interview Questions And Answers
It’s your big interview and you are nervous thinking about what will happen on the D day. Of course an interview is a big deal but not to that extent that you should start sweating over it. In fact sitting in an interview should be seen as an opportunity to test your confidence. Are you thinking what are the most common interview questions they ask? Well, we will get to that!
An interview is an opportunity for both the parties to determine whether they are a good fit for each other or not. Sometimes they stick to your general life instead of asking you skill based questions to get an idea of who you are apart from your 9-5 routine.
Tips To Prepare For an Interview:
An interview is usually a normal conversation between two people. A person just like you would be sitting over the other side of the table. It’s you and the person who might hire you. But what would they ask? How would you make sure you answer them correctly?
Well, relax and wipe that sweat off your forehead. There is no such thing as a correct answer, you are not sitting in a competitive exam. Here are a few tips you can consider before sitting in the interview:
Be honest:
All you need to keep in mind is to be honest with yourself. You might have to mould a few answers according to the requirements of the company, but it is better not to lie. You cannot start your career with a weak foundation. If you think you are a confident liar and lies can take you ahead, remember that lies are going to backfire and haunt you.
Be confident:
Confidence is the key. You need to work on your confidence before you sit for an interview. You can build confidence by going through the company’s profile online so you can have an idea of what they do. They might ask you related questions, this will help you avoid surprise.
Before the interview, make sure you go through your past experiences so you can fluently talk about them. The uneasiness while talking about your past experiences would lead the other person to think you might be making up the answer.
You can practise your speaking skills in front of the mirror. Or take up mock interviews where you can tell your family members or friends to ask a few questions.
Listen carefully:
A lot of times, the interviewee commits mistakes and answers the questions incorrectly when they are in a haste and do not listen properly. To answer the questions one needs to make sure they understand the questions correctly. If you did not get the question in the first go, ask them to repeat, so there is no misunderstanding.
Have hard copies of your resume:
Make sure you have copies of your resume with you when doing the interview. Whatever documents you are carrying with you make sure they are organised properly.
Take a note of this:
An interview can be overwhelming if you are just sitting on it. Brace yourself before addressing the elephant in the room. You might have to go through a few rounds of interviews in the same company but don’t worry, believe in yourself and walk in!
The company is only interested in what you will bring to the table. So be precise and be on the track with what skills you can offer to them. No matter which company you apply to, there are a few questions that would be common in every interview.
Here is a list of interview questions and answers that you can go through and prepare yourself.
Q. “Tell me about yourself”
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Answer? |
| This is the most significant question asked by the interviewer as it will play as an ice-breaker to start a conversation and ask follow-up questions.
So, the interviewer doesn’t know you. All they have is your resume but they would like to hear about yourself from you. This question is also a bridge between the interviewer and the interviewee to take the conversation further up a notch. This question serves as the ground for further conversation. Sometimes the interviewer might want to go thoroughly through your work experience and they will ask you to take them through it. |
A good answer to this question will comprise only the relevant information including, your educational background, where you have worked before, your previous projects and your current company, and previous and current roles and responsibilities.
Don’t add personal details unless asked. The answer to the above question does not require you to dive into how many family members you have. Describe in detail your previous works, positions, roles and responsibilities. Bring in the relevancy so the conversation could be meaningful to both the parties. |
Q. Why do you want to leave your current job or switch your job?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How to Frame the Answer? |
| Every interviewer would want to know why you are planning to switch your job or leave your current position.
The interviewer is interested to know what compelled you to look for other jobs. |
Be honest with your answer and tell them the reasons for leaving the job. The job change could be due to various reasons including monetary growth, personal and professional growth.
Be as transparent to answer this question as you can. But being transparent doesn’t mean you can bad mouth your boss in front of your potential employer. Don’t talk about how inconvenient you found it to work with your team. Such things are a reflection of your poor working behaviour and would not let you land another job. Be transparent with the positive reasons for choosing a new job opportunity. |
Q. How did you come to know about this job opportunity?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Frame the Answer? |
| To some this might seem an irrelevant question but the sole purpose to ask this question is to know which medium is successful for them to acquire candidates. | You might have come across the job opening through online or offline advertisements. Or someone referred you thinking you would be a better fit. |
Q. Why should we hire you?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Frame The Answer? |
| At the end of the day, employment is the trade. A trade between the company and the employee in which they pay you for your skills.
They are asking you this question to determine if you are a fit for the company and could be resourceful for them. |
Be prepared to answer this question and for that you would need to know a little bit about the company and role you are applying for. Knowing a few things about the role beforehand can help you frame this answer well.
It is more of a negotiation thing where you have to tell them why they should hire you instead of hiring another candidate. You need to convince them by telling them how your skills can be brought to the table and would be helpful for the role you have been offered. You will be an appropriate fit for a role if your interests lie with the role and you have the required skills. A graphic designer would not be a fit for a sales executive’s role. Whereas, on the other hand, a graphic designer’s skills can definitely come handy for creating content for social media. |
Q. What are your salary expectations?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Frame The Answer? |
| This is more of a budget question. Some companies ask you your previous salary to see if their salary range could accommodate more than your previous salary.
Other times they ask you this question to plan a hike in your salary. |
This is a significant question that you need to address skilfully. If you want to deflect the question you can tell them that you are open to discuss the salary based on the roles and responsibilities that comes with the job profile and see if it fits the market standards.
If you think the current number can be in your favour you can disclose the salary to the other party. Keep in mind that it is always better to discuss the salary range and not a specific number. |
Q. What do you like to do in your spare time?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Frame The Answer? |
| They are asking about your hobbies and interests to know who you are apart from your professional life.
The other reason to ask this question is to know where your interests and passion lies. Sometimes they are often checking what kind of a person you are if your professional life is not in the frame. They might also want to discover how to take care of your mental health. They want to know if you are doing anything other than your routine to sharpen your skills. |
Tell them about the things that you like to do and don’t stick to just reading and painting. They are definitely going to ask you about your hobbies so better be prepared to answer them with a unique thing.
You might think there is no unique interest that you follow. But look at your routine and see what you do most in your spare time that interests you. Your hobbies can include, reading product reviews, watching sunsets, watching crime documentaries, watching tech videos on YouTube, learning about new tech innovations, taking a walk through parks, sitting in the park and many more. Even if your hobby is reading and painting, be specific with it. You can frame your answer like this- I like to read fiction novels and I prefer to read fantasy novels. I like to paint sunsets or I like to sketch celebrities. |
Q. Do you have any questions for us?
| Interviewer’s Point of View | How To Frame The Answer? |
| At the end of every interview, the interviewer will ask you if you have any questions for them.
They ask you this question to determine if you are genuinely interested in the role they are offering you |
This is the final stroke and you can turn it into a masterstroke from your end.
Questioning them is a great opportunity for you to see if the company is actually a great fit for you. You can have a number of questions that would clear your doubts regarding the company, your position, your roles and responsibilities. Asking the right questions can turn into a huge opportunity for you. Here is a list of questions that you can ask your interviewer: “What does a typical day look like for a person in this position (the position that you are applying for)?” “Could do you expect from me working for this role?” “What are the company’s long term goals and how does my position align with them?” |
Final Thoughts:
The above-mentioned are a few common questions that the interviewer asks in an interview. The interview questions will vary depending on the company and the position you have applied to. Companies that are offering job opportunities for technical roles usually keep their questions around the technicalities of the subject.
Remember, your interview does not determine your worth, rather it is just a medium to let each other (the interviewer and interviewee) know how you both fit for each other. Keep your head high and walk in. Be honest and be confident because your confidence is the key to walk successfully out of that room!